Bash Aliases Every Developer Should Have

As developers, we spend a significant amount of time in the terminal. Bash aliases are a simple yet powerful way to speed up your workflow and reduce repetitive typing.

What are bash aliases?

An alias is a shortcut for a longer command. Instead of typing git status every time, you could just type gst.

Essential aliases

Git aliases

bash

# Status, add, commit
alias gst='git status'
alias ga='git add'
alias gc='git commit -m'
alias gp='git push'

# Branch operations
alias gb='git branch'
alias gco='git checkout'
alias gcb='git checkout -b'

# Log and diff
alias gl='git log --oneline --graph --all'
alias gd='git diff'

Navigation aliases

bash

# Quick navigation
alias ..='cd ..'
alias ...='cd ../..'
alias ll='ls -la'
alias la='ls -A'

System aliases

bash

# System operations
alias update='sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade'
alias ports='netstat -tulanp'
alias myip='curl ifconfig.co'

Setting up your aliases

Add these to your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc:

bash

# Add to your shell config
echo 'alias gst="git status"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Pro tip: Create functions

For more complex operations, use functions:

bash

# Create and switch to new branch
function gnew() {
  git checkout -b "$1"
}

# Quick commit
function gcm() {
  git add -A
  git commit -m "$1"
}

Conclusion

These small optimizations compound over time. Invest a few minutes setting up your aliases, and you'll save hours in the long run.

What are your favorite aliases? Share them with me on GitHub!